Financial Crises

Campaign 2012

The failure of the bipartisan supercommittee adds to a pattern of legislative gridlock that has left critics and international investors doubtingCongress's ability to address the nation's looming fiscal challenges.

New Prime Minister Mario Monti faces the daunting task of reining in Italy's high public debt. Analysts say he will have to tackle fiscal irresponsibility to rebuild market confidence and prevent the eurozone's third largest economy from defaulting.

New Prime Minister Lucas Papademos faces daunting challenges to rescue Greece's economy. A fiscal collapse, analysts say, will also raise questions over the eurozone's ability to manage debt crises in other struggling European economies.

Political divisions continue to hamper a comprehensive solution to the eurozone sovereign debt crisis. EU leaders are caught between market forces urging greater European fiscal integration and strong nationalist sentiments warning against a loss of political sovereignty.

Volatile global economic conditions have prompted hundreds of thousands of people around the world to demonstrate in solidarity with the Occupy Wall Street protesters. But the movement's potential for lasting impact stirs strong debate.

G20 finance ministers are pressing their EU counterparts to provide a comprehensive plan for stabilizing the eurozone and easing fears of contagion. They have signaled that, for now, the onus is on Europe to fix its debt problems.

Despite a German parliamentary vote to boost the eurozone's bailout mechanism, Greek sovereign debt levels appear unsustainable and a default may be inevitable. Most economists think the question now is how to make the process orderly.

Investors and financial markets are growing convinced that Greece will default on its debt, heightening fears of a eurozone banking crisis that would have significant ramifications for an already fragile global economy.

Sharp new fears of an escalation in eurozone debt troubles have intensified debate over whether to spur fiscal integration or risk a wider crisis with serious consequences for U.S. financial markets, experts say.

Renewing America

International financial market upheaval continues in response to eurozone worries and the U.S. Fed's decision to keep its benchmark rate near zero until mid-2013. Analysts are divided on whether the Fed's move will curb volatility.

Renewing America

With markets rattled by the downgrade of U.S. debt, some experts fear running out of policy tools to prevent another global recession, while others are calling on government and central banks to improve fiscal and monetary policy coordination.

Renewing America

While a last-minute deal was able to raise the U.S. debt ceiling ahead of default, global investors are frustrated by the unnecessary brush with crisis and by the culture of U.S. political brinkmanship. The long-term impact on U.S. treasuries is unclear.

Renewing America

As partisan wrangling over the U.S. debt ceiling continues in Washington, fears are mounting that a default could trigger another global economic crisis. This guide offers timely analysis on the global implications of the U.S. debt crisis.

Renewing America

Whatever the outcome of the debt ceiling debate, many analysts expect a downgrade in the U.S. debt rating because of doubts about deficit-reduction plans. The fallout could include higher borrowing costs, a weaker dollar, and market turbulence.

Despite the Greek parliament's approval of an austerity package, the country's enormous debt and EU countries' tortured debate over solutions raise concerns among some experts that default is unavoidable.

Renewing America

With the U.S. Treasury approaching its legal borrowing limit, political infighting over the United States' fiscal strategy threatens to thwart international investors and drive up U.S. borrowing costs.

CFR Experts Guide

The Council on Foreign Relations' David Rockefeller Studies Program—CFR's "think tank"—is home to more than seventy full-time, adjunct, and visiting scholars and practitioners (called "fellows"). Their expertise covers the world's major regions as well as the critical issues shaping today's global agenda. Download the printable CFR Experts Guide.

New Council Special Reports

Campbell evaluates the implications of the Boko Haram insurgency and recommends that the United States support Nigerian efforts to address the drivers of Boko Haram, such as poverty and corruption, and to foster stronger ties with Nigerian civil society.

Koblentz argues that the United States should work with other nuclear-armed states to manage threats to nuclear stability in the near term and establish processes for multilateral arms control efforts over the longer term.

The authors argue that it is essential to begin working now to expand and establish rules and norms governing armed drones, thereby creating standards of behavior that other countries will be more likely to follow.

2014 Annual Report

Learn more about CFR’s mission and its work over the past year in the 2014 Annual Report. The Annual Report spotlights new initiatives, high-profile events, and authoritative scholarship from CFR experts, and includes a message from CFR President Richard N. Haass.Read and download »